Yearning to be Home

Tonight I drove home from the volleyball game with my littles in the backseat. The sun glimmered through the leaves in that glorious way that it does. And I was in a place of such peace, such contentment, and yet still such yearning.

If I have learned one thing over the last six months it is this: being where God wants you to be is not always easy, but it is good.

Six months ago we were still dreaming our Central Texas dreams. Days in Waco stretched before me endlessly: parties in our big house, Sundays at Calvary, trips to the Cameron Park Zoo, cheering our Baylor Bears, shopping at my thrift stores, growing closer to that place and to those people that we so dearly loved. Waco was home. And we weren't expecting  that to change.

But God's plan wasn't exactly what we had in mind. And so, the past six months have been some of the hardest of our young lives. The anxiety of neither of us having jobs lined up. The frustration of possibilities falling through again and again. The hope that we would get to stay, then the hope that we would get to leave. Needless to say, it was a veritable roller coaster of emotions. Through it all we prayed that it would just be clear what He wanted for us, when the time came.

And because God is good, he answered that prayer beyond a shadow of a doubt. In June we were both offered jobs at the same school, in a city we were excited to explore, in a way that could only be God's leading. So we packed up everything we had, said goodbye to our beloved home and beloved friends, and moved to Virginia in a matter of two weeks. Every step and every detail was provided for and confirmed. But it was still hard.

And Virginia has been such an adventure! Already we love this beautiful city, and these beautiful people we get to work with, and this beautiful part of the country we get to live in! We have explored so much of the state already, but every weekend we are excited to get out and see something new! Our kids have adjusted seamlessly, and are already making new friends and loving their new home.

As for the work God brought us here to do - what a blessing! Every day I am reminded what a privilege it is to have a Head of School that speaks of our work as ministry. Aaron and I truly feel called to Christian education, and it is such a blessing to be supported, encouraged, and exhorted each day by the wonderful colleagues we have at Grove Christian School. We have been blown away by their ability to care deeply, pray without ceasing, lead by serving, and love us and our kids before we even arrived.

We have found a church with a wonderful Sunday School that reminds us just enough of our dear Calvary Young Adults but is also filled to the brim with parents of toddlers and babies. We have found our favorite park by our house, and I finally know the layout of each grocery store in the West End. I know my way around without looking at a map, but there is still some excitement to exploring new streets. So yeah, Richmond is a good place, and it is the right place. But it still isn't home. And I don't know how long it will be before the Heart of Texas doesn't pull at my heartstrings and reading the Calvary Tower doesn't make me long for home.

So what is it like to move far, far away from everyone you love and everything you know? It is a grand adventure and it can be oh-so-exciting and fun. But it is also lonely, and exhausting, and bittersweet, and surprising. Six months ago I never would have guessed that I would be writing this from RVA, but tonight as I pulled into my driveway and Quin announced "We're home to Virginia!", I reflected on the fellowship of these past weeks, of the joy in the exploration, and of the peace in knowing that we are where God wants us, and I did feel, at least a little bit, like I was finally home to Virginia.